Cast-iron pavement



SILAS T. SAVAGE, 0F ALBANY, NEW YORK.

CAST-IRON' PAVEMENT.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 22,896, dated February 8', 1859.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, SILAs T. SAVAGE, of Albany, in the county of Albany and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Cast-Iron Pavements; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in whichh Figure l, is a plan exhibiting several blocks of a pavement having my improvement. Fig. 2, is a side vi ew of two connected blocksof the same. Fig. 3, is an inverted plan of one of the locking pieces.

Similar letters of reference indicate correspending parts in the several figures.

This' invention consists in a method of connecting or combining polygonal or circular blocks to form a continuous cast-iron pavement, by means of dovetails on the said blocks, and locking pieces of peculiar construction fitting between the said blocks and into the dovetails thereon.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I will proceed to describe it with reference to the drawings.

The blocks A, A, in the example of my invention represented in the drawing, are externally of dodecagonal form in their horizontal section, with vertical sides and with vertical dovetails a, a, projecting from six of their alternate sides, said dovetails extending from their bases not quite to their upper faces and having their outer faces so formed that when the blocks are laid close together, side by side with those sides having no dovetails in contact with each other, the dovetails on the adjacent blocks will fit together, as shown at 4, in Fig. 1, and leave three triangular openings 5, 5, 5, between the blocks to receive the three triangular feet Z2, b, with which each of the locking pieces Bb, Bb, is furnished. .The locking pieces Bb, Bb, are made each with a triangular head B, tofit between the three adjacent dovetailed sides of, three adjacent blocks, and with a foot b, extending downward in continuation of each of the three angles of the head, the said feet being `also of triangular form and of a size to ifit the triangular openings 5, 5, 5, left between the adjacent blocks and their dovetails.

The heads B, B, of the locking pieces may be of such thickness as to stand flush, not quite so high, or a little higher than the upper surfaces of the blocks, and the feet thereof may extend the whole or 'only part of the way to the bottoms of the blocks. The blocks, when intended for roadways, may have cavities extending through, of any desirable form to contain gravel; and when intended for walks may be without suoli cavities, but may have a studded or grooved surface.

'Io lay the pavement, the blocks A, are simply placed side by side, as shown in Fig. l, on a properly prepared bed of concrete or other matter, such as is commonly used for pavements, or of suitable character, and the locking pieces inserted into their places. The locking pieces so connect and combine the several blocks as to make them support and sustain each other, andV render the pavement continuous.

Blocks of some other polygonal forms than that represented, as for instance, the octagonal, may be used with the same system of locking pieces and dovetail connections. The locking pieces for the octagonal blocks will require to be square and to have four feet, the feet having a similar triangular form to that represented. Circular blocks will require locking pieces having the form of curvilinear triangles and should have three feet.

I do not claim broadly the connection of the blocks by means of dovetails nor by the detached locking pieces, but

lWhat I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

Combining the blocks by the peculiarly arranged dovetails cast on the blocks and the locking pieces composed of heads and feet fitting between the blocks and into their dovetails, substantially as herein described.

S. T. SAVAGE.

I/Yitnessesz SAMUEL Gr. GONE, THOMAS HAsTINGs. 

